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DETROIT -- Ford Motor, stealing attention from arch-rival General Motors, hosted an unannounced unveiling of a concept truck that will become the next-generation F-150 pickup, arguably the most important product in the U.S. auto industry because of its profits and sales volume.

Called the Atlas concept, the truck was lowered from the ceiling at Joe Louis Arena downtown, accompanied by fireworks and a live band instead of the usual canned music. It came as an "oh-by-the-way" afterword, following Ford's Detroit auto show introduction of Transit and Transit Connect commercial vans.

The overhauled F-150 is due in showrooms next year, though Ford won't hint just when or say whether it'll be marketed as a 2014 model or a 2015.

The F-series trucks, including heavy-duty F-250 and F-350 models, are the best-selling vehicles of any kind in the U.S. and account for most of Ford's worldwide profits. Ford's not shy about defining the trucks even more broadly. CEO Alan Mulally: "The F-series is the heart and soul of America."

Ford for weeks had denied it would roll out a concept version of the next F-series at the North American International Auto Show here, hoping to keep the truck a surprise.

But Ford, expecting a big crowd nonetheless, booked its auto show press conference in the spacious Joe Louis instead of keeping it next door at the Cobo Center, which is home to the auto show and where other press conferences and introductions are held.

Exhibiting a facsimile vehicle so far in advance of its on-sale date is risky. If it's a knockout, some prospective buyers will wait for the new one and sales of the current model drop. That forces the automaker to boost profit-robbing incentives to clear out inventories of the current vehicle as the new one gets near.

And if those discounts get big enough, some buyers on the sidelines could decide to take the bait, draining the pool of buyers awaiting the new model.

"With an introduction this early, even as a concept, Ford risks the F-150 being old hat once it actually comes to market," says Eric Lyman, a vice-president at ALG, expert on forecasting depreciation, and the value of vehicles several years in the future when owners decide to trade.

"The current generation (F-150) may also suffer a dip in residual values as loyal customers await the all new product," Lyman says.

Ford, though, is banking on a different impact.

"Ford is hoping that by showing the concept F-150, it will stop buyers from purchasing from its rivals, especially the new (Chevrolet) Silverado and (GMC) Sierra that were recently introduced," says Jesse Toprak, auto industry analyst at TrueCar.com, which owns ALG.

"It's important for Ford that the F-150 does not lose its mantle of being the best selling truck for more than three decades," he says.

The crew-cab versions of Silverado and Sierra, which are the most popular models, go on sale this quarter. Other versions will join the line over the following months.

Though the trucks are displayed at the auto show, GM arranged a major coming-out event for them last month. The idea was to avoid competing with GM's radically remade Chevrolet Corvette, the automaker's headliner at the Detroit show.

The new F-150 not only will be chasing GM's head start in the market, it also will be fighting Chrysler's Ram 1500, updated for 2013 -- enough so that it won the North American Truck/Utility of the Year award, presented Monday.

GM and Chrysler will have time, and their fresh models, to mine the vein of buyers, hoping to leave far fewer prospects for Ford.

Intending to douse a wildfire of talk that the next F-150 will take the radical step of using an aluminum frame -- likely controversial to the point of being a deal-breaker among some truck buyers -- a Ford specifications sheet on Atlas almost gratuitously noted that the frame is steel.

It also said the body panels are steel, but Ford demurs on that, saying it's too soon to talk about what material will be used for the body of the production trucks. In other words, it could, indeed, be the aluminum body that's in the rumor mill.

Ford will use a number of unspecified methods to cut weight, which improves fuel economy. And it mentioned a new-generation EcoBoost engine, but gave no details.EcoBoost combines turbocharging and direct fuel injection to boost performance of small engines while offering improved mileage.

"That speaks to their commitment to fuel efficiency in the segment," says Jessica Caldwell, industry analyst at Edmunds.com. Ford has pioneered the notion of fuel-efficient pickups, at least by the standards of big pickups, but Chrysler's updated 2013 Ram has leapfrogged the F-150 by using an eight-speed automatic transmission, unique in a full-size pickup, and aerodynamic aids.

Ram V-6 with the eight-speed and two-wheel drive is rated 17 miles per gallon in the city, 25 on the highway, 20 mpg in mixed city/highway use.

Ford's heavily advertised EcoBoost V-6 with two-wheel drive is rated 16/22/18. It has much more power than the Ram's V-6, though.

To help cut wind resistance and boost mileage, Atlas has:

A front air dam that automatically adjusts its height depending on speed. It helps send air around the truck instead of into the drag-causing turbulence underneath.

Grille shutters that close when more engine cooling's unneeded, to send more air around the and less into the engine compartment. The devices are becoming common on cars and trucks, so it's no stretch to imagine they'll be on the production truck.

Wheel shutters, which seem a bit tricky to make it into production. They close off the spaces between wheel spokes to smooth airflow over the wheels instead of tangling the air among the spokes and brake mechanisms and suspension components.

The aero approach and weight trimming are "indicative of where we're headed," says Raj Nair, Ford's vice president of engineering for global product development.

The Ford Atlas concept pickup truck is unveiled on Jan. 15 at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Carlos Osorio, AP